Show me the Rupees!

There are so many topics that I want to share with you all I just don’t know where to begin. I had a funny experience at lunch today and thought today’s blog should be about money. In India the currency is the Rupee and the exchange rate is about $1 to 43Rs.  I am currently carrying about 2,000Rs ( I feel like such a baller!) See below for the photos of the currency below.

In case you are wondering that is Gandhi on the front of all the bills. I have not fully researched the backs of the bills but if I find something interesting that may be a later post.

At times it is very confusing how much and who I should tip. Breakfast at the hotel is a free buffet so in the US when breakfast buffets are included in the hotel rate I would tip about $2, here we were told to tip about 20Rs which is about 80 cents.  The guy that carried my bags to my room got 30 Rs and my cab driver gets 50Rs each way. Do I tip the guy that the presses the elevator button for me in the office? Do I tip the woman who brought me extra towels? How much do I tip when the team goes to dinner? Apparently meal service is not even a standard 10%.

As part of compensation at EY India each person is given a coupon book to cover lunch every day of the month. The rotators were given a coupon book for lunch for the month when we first arrived at the office. Lunch cost about 50Rs a day or $1.11. Lunch isn’t anything fancy (I think I could eat better on the McDonald’s dollar menu) it normally consists of rice, beans, vegetables, and other questionable items that I do not eat. 

Here is a photo of the coupon and the coupon book.

Alli the woman on the cover is eating a slice of pizza...I have yet to see pizza served anywhere over here except on the hotel menu in what I would call the American safe section.

So back to lunch today, there are two cafeterias on “campus” (the two buildings that EY personnel are in). The building that I am in we only have one floor and the cafeteria is on the same floor and is pretty small. Today at lunch I had to go get my badge (the badge process and security is tomorrows topic) so I walked across campus to meet the other team members who needed badges and we decided to check out the cafeteria over there.

I ate lunch with the team as normal and then noticed on the other end of the cafeteria (next to the foosball table and the kiosk where you can check your facebook account) there was a vendor with a stand selling other items such as chips, gum, pastries, and Diet Coke (stuff that you would buy at a sundry shop in the US). I’ve been trying to stay away from the temptations of soda but with jet lag and my body being completely confused of what time zone I am in I decided I needed a Diet Coke. I inquired with the vendor and was told a Diet Coke was 25Rs (naturally I was  sold considering I paid 141Rs at the hotel on Sunday for a DC). I gave the vendor a bill for 100Rs and expected that he would give me 75Rs in cash back. I was stunned when he handed me a 50Rs lunch coupon, a 20Rs lunch coupon, and a pack of Orbit gum! I couldn’t help but to laugh! I am thinking that tomorrow I should be able to trade the 20Rs lunch coupon and the Orbit gum for another Diet Coke!!!

 Had I realized that getting a Diet Coke was on the barter system I would have traded my packet of oatmeal that I can't make because there are no spoons or bowls in the office!!!